


Kneecaps and Motorcycles

by imaginary_golux



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Corgi BB-8, M/M, Meet-Cute, Motorcycles, aftermath of Armitage Hux/Finn breakup
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-12
Updated: 2016-12-12
Packaged: 2018-09-08 04:11:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8830033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imaginary_golux/pseuds/imaginary_golux
Summary: Finn has just dumped his really horrid last boyfriend, but now he's stranded in a strange city with no easy way to get home.
Thankfully, help is about to arrive.
Beta by my Best of all Beloveds, Turn_of_the_Sonic_Screw. Title from the wonderful starbirdrampant.





	

Finn watches Armitage’s car speed away with a feeling of immense relief, which lasts about long enough for the taillights to vanish around a corner before being replaced with the sudden and distinctly unpleasant realization that Finn now has no way to get home. Armitage always likes going into the city for dinner - claims the town they live in is far too provincial to have decent restaurants, though Finn’s always liked the ones he’s tried - and now Finn is stranded in the middle of a city he’s really not familiar with, outside a restaurant whose waitstaff have absolutely no reason to be so much as _civil_ to him - not that Finn was the one being rude, but Armitage was _definitely_ rude enough for both of them - and he’s not sure he’s got enough in his wallet for a cab ride all the way home.

Shit.

Well, the one thing he’s _not_ going to do is call Armitage. The bastard is probably _waiting_ for him to do that, so he can come back and drive Finn home, guilt-tripping him every mile of the way, until Finn finds himself apologizing for the poor service (it wasn’t) and the bad food (it was delicious) and the way he so _inexcusably_ took the restaurant’s side instead of Armitage’s.

Yeah, fuck that _sideways_. Finn will _walk_ home before he puts himself through that again. He has broken up with Armitage for fucking _good_ , this time, and he’ll make that stick if it’s the _last_ thing he does.

The restaurant door opens behind him, and Finn steps to the side to get out of the way. There’s no point loitering _here_ , anyhow - he’d better start walking.

“‘Scuse me,” someone says beside him, and Finn startles, turning to see a really _startlingly_ attractive man in a battered leather jacket standing there looking hesitant. “I, um, couldn’t help overhearing some of that -”

Finn sighs. “I suspect the whole _restaurant_ overheard that,” he says miserably. “Probably the whole _block_.”

The other man shrugs and offers a crooked grin. “He was a bit loud, yeah. So. Um. D’you - need a ride anywhere? Because it sure as hell sounded like he just stranded you on purpose, and that is a _dick_ move, my friend.”

Finn blinks. This could be a trap - just because this fellow is unfairly pretty doesn’t mean he’s actually a good person - but -

The man pulls a wallet out of his pocket and opens it to his license. “Here,” he says. “D’you want to call someone and tell them you’re with me? So if something goes wrong, they can hunt me down?”

“Rey _would_ ,” Finn says, laughing, and fishes out his phone. Rey answers sleepily - she goes to bed with the sun, most days. “Hey, sunshine, so I have good news and bad news and weird news.”

“You finally dump that absolute fucker Hux?” Rey asks eagerly.

“Yeah, I did,” Finn says, and has to hold the phone away from his ear when Rey squeals in glee. The handsome stranger claps a hand over his mouth to stifle his laughter.

“So what’s the _bad_ news?” Rey demands once she’s finished her victory chant.

“Bad news is I’m stranded in the city,” Finn sighs. “And the _weird_ news is that this guy is offering me a ride home, and said I should call and give you his information in case he turns out to be a serial killer.”

The handsome stranger laughs harder.

“Give him the phone,” Rey says. Finn shrugs and does.

“Good evening,” the handsome stranger says, and then, “Poe. Poe Dameron. I work for Resistance Shipping - yeah, Ms. Organa, that’s my boss - oh, hey, that’s awesome! Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Yeah, I promise.” He laughs again, eyes shining in the streetlights as he glances at Finn. “No worries, I wouldn’t _dare_ get you angry at me,” he assures Rey, and hands the phone back.

“That _is_ what his license says?” Rey demands.

“It is,” Finn confirms, starting to smile.

“Then I think he’s probably safe,” Rey says. “He knows my boss, which means I can hunt him down and break his kneecaps if I gotta. See you!”

Finn blinks down at the phone in mild confusion. “So,” he says to Poe Dameron, who grins even wider.

“You need a ride, then?” Poe asks.

“I need a ride,” Finn says, sighing. “Thank you for the offer.”

“Yeah, apparently your fierce friend will kneecap me if I fuck this up,” he says cheerfully. “It’s good to have friends like that.”

“Rey’s the best,” Finn agrees, and falls in beside Poe as he leads the way down the street towards the parking lot. “She’d come get me herself, but her car’s in the shop. Again.”

“Again?” Poe asks, quirking an eyebrow at Finn.

“It’s in the shop two weeks in three,” Finn sighs. “She says it’s a classic - use to be her boss’s - but honestly the thing’s a heap of junk.”

“Used to be her boss’s…” Poe muses, then startles. “Not the Falcon!”

“That’s what she calls it, yeah,” Finn admits.

“But that’s practically a piece of _history_!” Poe says, eyes gleaming. “I’d give my _eyeteeth_ to drive that thing! You gotta introduce me, buddy - does she like flowers? Chocolate? Wrench sets?”

“Who even says eyeteeth anymore?” Finn asks, baffled. “And Rey likes any sort of food, really.”

“Food, got it,” Poe says, nodding seriously like he’s filing the information away. “And eyeteeth is a perfectly useful word, I don’t know why people don’t use it anymore.”

“...I have no idea,” Finn admits.

Poe stops in front of a stall, and Finn blinks at the vehicle: a motorcycle, black with orange stripes. It’s sleek and fast-looking, and Finn has never so much as _touched_ a motorcycle before. “Um,” he says hesitantly.

“Admittedly I did not plan on having a passenger when I left the house this evening,” Poe says, shoving his hands deep in his pockets and looking awkward for the first time since Finn’s met him. “So I was thinking, I’ll take you to _my_ place on this, and then we can switch to my actual _car_ to get you home, so you don’t freeze solid.”

“Or fall off,” Finn says. “Sure, that sounds good. As long as this isn’t a cunning ploy to lure me into your ominous lair.”

Poe laughs, and rummages in one of the saddlebags on his bike, producing a helmet for Finn. “No ominous lair, I’m afraid. Perfectly normal little townhouse.”

“Not even menacing Dobermans in the front yard?” Finn asks, strapping the helmet on and waiting for Poe to demonstrate the proper way of getting onto a motorcycle.

“I’ve got a corgi,” Poe says, shrugging and swinging a leg over the motorcycle. “Does that count?”

“That’s...really not menacing,” Finn says. “Okay, so how do I -?”

“Just swing a leg over, and hold onto my waist,” Poe says, grinning broadly, and then appears to think of something, and shucks out of his jacket. “And put this on - your sweater won’t stop the wind.”

“Sure,” Finn says dubiously, and obeys. Poe grins even wider.

“It suits you,” he says, looking satisfied. “Now, climb on, and here we go!”

*

The ride back to Poe’s house is quick and exhilarating and only a little terrifying, and Finn doesn’t think he clings _too_ hard to Poe’s waist. Poe’s house is, as promised, a perfectly normal little townhouse on a quiet street; there’s a light in one of the downstairs windows, and as Poe pulls into the driveway Finn can hear a faint, excited barking.

“Mind if I run in to see if Beebee has enough food?” Poe asks, and Finn shrugs and gets very carefully off the motorcycle.

“Sure,” he says. “Mind if I use your bathroom?”

“Be my guest, buddy,” Poe says, grinning and clapping Finn on the shoulder, and Finn trails him into the house. They’re barely in the door before Poe is kneeling down, a corgi leaping eagerly into his arms. “Hey, there, Beebee, look, I came home,” Poe says cheerfully. “Bathroom’s first door on your right, Finn.”

Finn edges around Poe and the corgi and heads for the bathroom - the amount of time he spent drinking water so he wouldn’t say something to set Armitage off has caught up to him with a _vengeance_ \- and when he emerges, Poe is actually flat on his back in the entrance hall with the corgi licking his face enthusiastically. Finn can’t help laughing.

“It makes him feel tall,” Poe says, looking sheepish, and stands up, the corgi in his arms. “Let me just wash my face and we can head out.”

Finn nods, leaning back against the wall, and Poe puts the dog down and heads into the bathroom. The corgi comes over and sniffs Finn’s feet dubiously. Finn hunkers down, not quite sure what else to do - he doesn’t interact with dogs often - and offers a hand. The dog considers him, snuffling at the sleeve of the jacket, then appears to decide that Finn is alright, and licks his hand wetly. “There’s a good dog?” Finn says experimentally, and pets its head carefully. It leans against his knee and wuffles.

Poe comes out of the bathroom and laughs. “You’ve been adopted,” he says cheerfully. “Alright then, off to _your_ house so your friend doesn’t have to kneecap me.”

Finn stands, patting the dog one more time, and follows Poe out to the garage. Poe’s car, as Finn might have guessed, is just as sleek and black as his motorcycle; Finn’s not sure what _kind_ of car it is, beside sleek and fast, but that’s alright; if he describes it to Rey, she’ll be able to tell him everything about it. Sometimes Finn thinks she’s managed to memorize every car manual ever produced.

*

“So you don’t have to tell me anything, and I will do my damnedest to shut up if you need me to,” Poe says once they’ve pulled out onto the street, “though admittedly I am crap at being quiet, ask anyone - but how the hell did a nice fellow like you end up with a grade-A asshole like _that_?”

“Well, he wasn’t nearly as much of an asshole when he asked me out,” Finn says, shrugging. “I’m not _that_ blind. He did the whole - red roses and wooing thing.” He shrugs again. “And then he turned out to be - well. An asshole. Rey’s been telling me to break up with him for _weeks_. Maybe in the middle of dinner in a city I don’t know wasn’t the smartest time, though.”

Poe laughs. “I dunno, it means you got to meet me and Beebee, that’s surely worth something!” he says cheerfully, grinning crookedly at Finn.

“Yeah, the corgi makes the whole night worth it,” Finn says wryly.

“Hey, Beebee is a _treasure_ ,” Poe says, mock-offended. “He’s defended me from some remarkably dangerous pigeons in his time!”

Finn laughs until his sides hurt. It’s not really _that_ funny, but once he starts laughing it’s keep laughing or start crying, because he may have been the one to break it off with Armitage but the things Armitage - _said_ \- it’s laugh or cry, and Finn opts for laugh, because damned if he’ll shed a single tear for that asshole ever again. Poe seems to understand, because when Finn starts to wind down he shoots Finn a mischievous look and coos like a startled pigeon, and Finn loses it again.

“There we go,” Poe says, when Finn has stopped laughing and is leaning back gasping for breath. “That’s much better.”

“Thanks,” Finn says, and means it. “I needed that.”

“I’ve been there, buddy,” Poe says sympathetically. “Even the awful ones are sometimes hard to lose. But hey! He’s gone, you’re here, it’s a beautiful night and the stars are out.”

“And the company is good,” Finn says, smiling back. Poe actually _blushes_ , ears turning red enough that Finn can see it even in the dim light.

There’s a brief silence, and then Poe says, “So what do you do, when you’re not wandering about strange cities?”

“I’m an EMT,” Finn says, shrugging. Poe grins.

“Knew you had to do _something_ awesome,” he says cheerfully.

“...Why?” Finn asks, more than a little confused.

Poe shrugs a little. “Handsome, sweet-natured, funny - you had to do _something_ awesome so you’d be even more out of my league,” he explains. “I always do fall for the ones that are too good for me.”

Finn considers this. “Well,” he says at last, as Poe turns onto the street where Finn’s apartment building stands, “I did just break up with my last boyfriend. I need a little time before I start thinking about dating again.”

“Of course,” Poe says instantly. “I’m so sorry - should have kept my big mouth shut -”

Finn reaches across to put his hand very gently over Poe’s mouth as Poe puts the car into park. Poe goes silent, staring at Finn with wide eyes that catch the streetlights’ glow and seem as deep as the night sky.

“Shall we say a week?” Finn asks quietly. “I know a nice place in town, they’re open late on Saturdays. Dog-friendly, too.”

Poe nods vigorously against Finn’s palm, and Finn chuckles and moves his hand. “Sounds good,” Poe says, looking like he’s just had Christmas and his birthday come all at once. “Shall we say six o’clock next Saturday?”

“I’ll be waiting,” Finn confirms, smiling. “Until then -”

“Goodnight,” Poe says hoarsely, and Finn nods and slides out of the car. Rey is waiting on the front step, wrapped up in a blanket and looking sleepy and adorable with her hair all tousled, and Finn trots up the steps and hugs her hard and turns to wave as Poe drives away.

“So,” says Rey. “Do I have to break any kneecaps?”

“No,” Finn says, watching Poe’s taillights disappear around the corner and feeling himself smiling so broadly it actually hurts his cheeks. “Well - not Poe’s, anyway. C’mon, it’s late, I’ll tell you about it inside. And next week you can meet him before we go to dinner.” He opens the door for her, and does not laugh as she shuffles inside, feet encased in fuzzy slippers three sizes too large. “He’s got a really cute dog.”

“A cute dog, a nice car, and a decent sense of humor,” Rey says thoughtfully as Finn follows her up the stairs to their apartment. “Your taste in men is improving.”

“It could hardly have gotten worse,” Finn points out, and Rey grins back at him.

“There’s that,” she agrees. “Maybe I’ll break _Hux’s_ kneecaps.”

“No,” Finn says slowly, thinking it over. “Honestly, I’m almost grateful. If he wasn’t such an asshole, I’d not have met Poe.”

“Well, that’s alright then,” Rey says, and shuffles into their apartment, collapsing onto the couch with a sigh and burrowing into her blanket wrappings until all that’s showing is the tip of her nose and a pair of bright brown eyes. “I guess he can live.”

Finn leans down to kiss the top of her head - or at least the top of the heap of blankets. “My fierce Rey,” he says fondly. “Thank you for looking out for me.”

“Oh, go to bed,” Rey says, trying not to sound pleased. “Dream of your Poe Dameron and his lovely car.”

“I think I will - well, maybe not the car,” Finn says, grinning. “I leave that all to you.” And beats a hasty retreat into his bedroom before Rey can do more than make indignant noises at him.

And if he spends a few minutes before he falls asleep in idle daydreams about Poe Dameron’s dark eyes and the way he blushes to the tips of his ears and the way the leather jacket he forgot to take back, which is now hanging on the headpost of Finn’s bed, smells like Poe, a faint spicy scent that makes Finn think of warmth and laughter - well, that’s nobody’s business but his own.

Next Saturday, Finn thinks before sleep rises up to wash him under, cannot come soon enough.

**Author's Note:**

> I am, as ever, on tumblr as imaginarygolux. Drop on by!


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